Erastus Dow Palmer

Palmer, Erastus Dow, 1817–1904, American sculptor, b. Pompey, N.Y., self-taught. A carpenter in his youth, he spent his leisure time cutting cameos. He progressed to carving bas-reliefs and then figures in the round, sculpted to conform with the classical ideal. His first full-length figure, The Indian Girl, and his most famous sculpture, The White Captive, are in the Metropolitan Museum.

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